Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT)

Why UM-Flint

What Sets UM-Flint's Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) Program Apart?

The DPT program at UM-Flint prepares you to become an exceptional practitioner ready to advance your practice while also advancing patient care. It employs a life-span approach, which encourages you to value and respect diversity of gender, race, culture and disability, regardless of age.

FULL- OR PART-TIME

The DPT from UM-Flint allows you to pursue your interests and direct your course of study. Choose the full-time track to complete your degree in three years. The program’s part-time enrollment option gives you the flexibility to complete your degree while balancing personal and professional obligations.

RELEVANT CLINICAL EXPERIENCE

As part of the DPT program, you’ll have a say in choosing clinical internships that reflect your academic and professional interests, and that translate directly to your future practice as a physical therapist.

EXPERT FACULTY

DPT faculty remain available and accessible to mentor and support you throughout the program and after graduation. Along with the guidance of faculty, you’ll also have the support of fellow students who enter and complete the program alongside you. You’ll develop close connections with your classmates who share your journey as well as your passion for excellence in patient care.

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Broaden your experience and build your professional network through participation in the DPT Student Organization, state and national professional organizations, as well as PT HEART—the student-led pro bono clinic that enables DPT students to work directly with underserved patients from the local community.

DUAL ADVANCED DEGREES

Students interested in pursuing leadership roles have the option to combine a DPT degree with a Master of Business Administration earned through UM-Flint’s highly respected School of Management. Our dual degree program allows you to earn both degrees simultaneously with certain courses counting toward both programs.

The Physical Therapy Department offers a Doctor of Philosophy in Physical Therapy, PhD in PT. Students interested in teaching or research can earn a PhD in PT in conjunction with our DPT.

U-M RESOURCES

As part of the world-renowned University of Michigan, you’ll have access to the full academic and research resources at the Flint, Dearborn, and Ann Arbor campuses.

Admission

Admission to the program is highly competitive with 60 students admitted in Fall semester. Competitive applicants often have GPAs above 3.5 and an average GRE score in both verbal and quantative of 153. Up-to-date admissions requirements and application process information is available here.

All official documents are to be sent to The Office of Graduate Programs:

Postal Service Electronically
The University of Michigan-Flint graduate@umflint.edu
The Office of Graduate Programs
251 Thompson
303 E. Kearsley St.
Flint, MI 48457

Courses

Requirements (120 credits)

The DPT degree requires completion of a three-year academic program with satisfactory completion of clinical education courses. Students must achieve an overall GPA of 3.0 or higher both prior to beginning the final clinical internships (PTP 823, PTP 824, PTP 825) and upon completion of the degree program. The program is completed in three consecutive years on a full-time basis. Each academic calendar is a 14-week Fall and Winter semester followed by a 10-week (first year) or 11-week (second year) Spring semester. A part-time curriculum is also available.

Three (3) credit hours of electives must be selected from the list provided below. For more detailed information regarding the Independent Study course and other courses, please speak with your advisor.

PTP 602 - Independent Research (1-10)

PTP 769 - Chronic Pain Management Across Disciplines (3)

PTP 779 - International Service Learning (3)

PTP 789 - Advanced Topics in Physical Therapy (1-3)

Additional information on the Professional Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) Program including course descriptions can be found in the catalog.

Applying

Sixty students are admitted once each year in the fall semester (Fall 2019 is the next available admission semester).

The UM-Flint Physical Therapy program operates on a rolling-admission basis; we encourage you to apply early.

The deadline to submit all your documents to PTCAS is October 15 to ensure full consideration of your application. It can take up to six weeks for PTCAS to send UM-Flint all of your documents after you have submitted them to PTCAS.

If you do not submit all PTCAS materials to PTCAS by October 15, the materials may arrive to UM-Flint late and could take your application out of consideration.

Submit the following to PTCAS by October 15, 2018:

Official transcripts from all colleges and universities you have attended in the United States (foreign transcripts are to be sent to the Office of Graduate Programs, not PTCAS)

Two letters of reference submitted to PTCAS.

One reference must be from a physical therapist who has observed you within the last five years in a clinical setting.

The second reference may be from another physical therapist or a university professor who has instructed you in a course within the last five years, or who has acted as your academic advisor.

GRE scores (general test) sent to UM-Flint Institutional Code #7737. Must be completed before application will be considered for admission

Transcripts and diplomas or certificates of graduation from any colleges and universities you have attended from outside the United States (do not send to PTCAS)

Additional Documentation if your native language is not English or you are an international student seeking a student visa. Visit the International Students page for details.

Accreditation

The Professional DPT Program at the University of Michigan-Flint
is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy
education (CAPTE), 1111 North Fairfax Street, Alexandria, Virginia 22314;
telephone: 703-706-3245; email: accreditation@apta.org; website: http://www.capteonline.org.

Outcomes

Scholarships

Deblina Deb, DPT

Hometown: Chicago, IL

I aspire to start my career as a traveling Physical Therapist. I want to be able to work with people of all walks of life to help me become a more well-rounded therapist and to help me become more culturally competent. Once I am done with my travels, I hope to be able to work with patients who have neurologic diseases and disorders and the pediatric population as well. I also aspire to earn a Neurologic Specialist Certification and this dream would not be possible without my graduate degree from UM-Flint. During my education here at UM-Flint, I have learned that I love Neurology. It excites me to work with complicated patients who have deficits such as traumatic brain injuries and spinal cord injuries. I really want to be able to help this population and the training I am receiving here at UM-Flint will help me achieve my goal.